Zxoaame
Setting Zxoaame (pronounced ʒo'jame) is the constructed language of Zxoaamakonora, a large island nation smack dab in the middle of the Indian Ocean. The size of the island is comparable to Puerto Rico. When it was discovered by European traders in the late 18th century, it became a trading station and quickly grew into a luxurious European hub. The English initially claimed the calm island, but French, Spanish, and even Russian influences spread within a decade. The influx of foreigners introduced new elements to the native culture including (inadvertently) their languages. The result of the conglomeration was Zxoaame, an attempted auxlang with the structure similar to that of European languages but a vocabulary comprised entirely of Zxoaaman roots. The auxlang never gained ground among the traders, but the islanders were keen on facilitating communications with those who brought them exotic goods. Phonology & Phonotactics Consonants Consonants may only come in clusters of 2 except when separated by a syllabic break: [a'mz'.vr'oje] Vowels When two of the same vowel appear in succession, a j (palatal approximant) precedes the sound: (aa = ja). When three of the same vowel appear in succession, the j is penultimate: (aaa = aja) Because of the retroflex approximant (ɻ), the vowels that precede this phoneme are rhoticized. Orthography Zxoaame uses the simple Latin alphabet (i.e. no diacritics) Digraphs Digraphs count as one consonant and may be preceded/succeeded by another consonant. Two digraphs may not be placed together, even when separated by a syllabic break. Though if it occurs, the vowel "e" is used between them. In the case of 2 successive words, one ending in a digraph and the next beginning, the "e" is placed on the second word: (tasx'e'xx, voxx '''e'xxi). There is a non-standard but generally accepted "invisible" rule regarding non-digraph sibilants. If two or more sibilants are placed next to each other, a reduced "invisible" vowel ə may be used between them: (gesx [ə'] sandi, raz['ə']zxe). Stress Stress for the most part is penultimate, but there are many irregulars. Basic Grammar Word Order Zxoaame is generally SVO. Verbs Verbs end in "-zxe", the infinitive. Conjugated verbs are succeeded by verbs in their infinitive form (I want '''to go'). Below are the regular endings in the present tense. Here's the conjugation of a regular verb zazxe - to walk Here an example of an irregular verb conjugation for mezxe - to be Tense The two tenses (past and future) are split into the near and the far, relative to the context of the conversation. All verbs are regular when changing tenses. Voice Zxoaame possesses 2 marked voices; the active is understood. Active The active voice is unmarked. Passive The passive voice is formed with the past (near or far, depending on context) participle and the prefix "zxa". The conjugation is that of the agent: *Et kate zxa'hemesxoruuda di aam - The cat was thrown by me Middle Middle voice is formed with the prefix "por" *Et kate '''por'hemesxorfin - The cat throws itself Aspects Aspect endings are always ultimate in relation to the tense and person Moods Verbs do not conjugate for moods. Particles are used instead and precede the subject. Cases There are five cases used in Zxoaame. Nominative Case The subject of the sentence, as opposed to the object. Nouns decline in the nominative, not the root. Predicates are in the nominative. *'''Tope mesx uu kate - It is a cat Accusative Case The direct object *Aa hemesxoruu er katek - I throw the cat The Accusative is used with prepositional phrases that describe a change in position *Aa paluu go er aftozxos - I run to the car (You run from a previous position to a new position- the car) Dative Case The indirect object *Aa zduvuu efe kateke mezxe priska - I want the cat to be pink The Dative is used with prepositional phrases that do not describe a change in position *Aa paluu va efe kisxvi - I run with shoes (You run by the use of shoes) Possessive Case Rather than a genitive case (as is more common), the possessive case is used to denote the relationship of possession. An article must always be used, though definitiveness is determined by context: *'aaz uuwa '''kate - my (a) cat The possessive case does not influence the declension of the possessed object *Aa paluu go '''aaz' ez katek - I run to my (the) cat Comparative-Equative Case Rare even on their own, the comparative and equative cases (as their names suggest) mark a similarity or equality to an object. In Zxoaame, these cases are put together and rely on a few trigger words: *'vee' - like/as *'ebeneka'...sxar - more...than *'izxebeneka'...sxar - less...than (These forms of the adverbs "beneka" and "izxbeneka" are used only with the Comparative-Equative case) *'osxka'...vee - as...as Usage Examples: *Ezx zenbaeet vee uuzxa kixxioora - This tastes like a fish The comparison is initiated with "vee", the article and the compared noun are declined. *Aa ve ebeneka prozx e'sxar' besx - I am more fast than you Note that the adjective does not decline. When a noun is modified by a number or relative quantity, it does not decline: *Aa ve ebeneka prozx e'sxar' sieen gadxi - I am more fast than 100 winds (idiom) The speaker is not faster than winds in general, only the 100 that are explicitly stated, so "gadxi" does not decline. However, if the noun phrase is definite, the noun declines (i.e. the 100 winds). Numbers/relative quantities do not require articles unless in this manner. *Aa ve ebeneka prozx esxar zmon gadxi - I am more fast than some winds Again, not in general, only "some." In other words, some winds could be faster than you. There is an exception to this rule: *Aa ve ebeneka prozx esxar paa gadxioori - I am more fast than all winds Nouns and Declension Pronouns Articles Adjectives Adjectives do not decline and are placed immediately before the noun *Et horoda kate mesx prozx '''- The '''brown cat is fast Demonstrative Adjectives The demonstratives also do not decline but are distinguished by distance *ezx - this *darezx - that *ladarezx - yonder Adverbs Rather than being a catch-all category for verb/adjective/sentence modifiers, adverbs in Zxoaame are split into those categories (designated by VM, AM, and SM). These adverb groups go before the item they describe. Verb Modifier (VM) VMs were originally formed by doubling the nominative. But over time, the word for "two" or "double" was adopted as a prefix to a singular root. Some examples: *Prozxprozx --> Leprozx (quickly- lit. "double fast") :Aa leprozx paluu - I quickly run :Note: This does not mean "twice as fast" *Giragira --> Legira (slowly) :Dxe legira miaadxaneet - He/she slowly swims *Maatamaata --> Lemaata (forcefully) :Bek lemaata hemesxorel er katek - You forcefully throw the cat Adjective Modifier (AM) AMs end in "eka" or "ka": *beneka - very (to a great degree) :Dxe voxx beneka prozx - He is very fast *izxbeneka - a bit (to a lesser degree) :Dxe voxx izxbeneka prozx - He is a bit fast *izxka - not (to no degree) :Dxe voxx izxka prozx - He is not fast *osxka - as :Tope mesx osxka prozx vee aaxxo - It is as tall as me (lit. It is as tall like me) :Note: This is one of the trigger words for the comparative-equative case. The conjunction "vee" (meaning roughly "like" or "as") is the main trigger and complements "osxka." Sentence Modifier (SM) SMs are formed with the prefix "mir" attached to the nominative. SMs are usually modal adverbs. *Mirdxa - today :Mirdxa aa paluu - Today I run :Note: Time periods are expressed as sentence or clause modifiers rather than verb modifiers *Mirkadaeen - obviously, clearly :Mirkadaeen em akwo uuz katek - Obviously we have a cat *Mirgovoaa - as a matter of fact :Mirgovoaa em oom akwo uuz katek - As a matter of fact, we do have a cat :Note: "oom" is used to contradict a negative statement and is placed before the verb. : Interrogatives These words must be preceded by "baa" in order to function as interrogatives. Determiners: Baa fe uu kate? - What cat? Aa kovuu fe uu kate - I know what cat. *fe - what *mok - whose Pronoun: *ran - who *xxan - which Pro-adverb: *var - where *mizxa - when *dolze - how *hiuu - why Prepositions Prepositions decline only for gender and number: If the preposition describes a change in position, the accusative is used for the succeeding items. If it does not describe a change in position, the dative is used instead: :Aa paluu vo ef kateke - I run with the cat. (dative) "Alongside" does not describe a change in location of the runner, it describes his proximity to the cat. :Bek palel go er katek - You run to the cat. (accusative) "To" describes a change in location; the runner began from an unknown location and ended at a different location. Conjunctions These are pretty straightforward Coordinating Subordinate Zxoaame does not possess any subordinate conjunctions. SM adverbs are used instead. Correlating Existensial Clause An existensial clause is formed with the infinitive vomnazxe '- ''to exist: *Vomnazxe ee katem - There are (some) cats Numbers The Zxoaamans, due to the extent of European trading, have adopted the European numeral system. Basic Conversation Hello - Halo (to Europeans), Eti demuz ipadel (lit. The gods smile) How are you? - Baa bek vel? (lit. Do you are?- requires "yes" or "no" instead of "good" or "bad") Yes - da No - oo Goodbye - Va efe demuztaa (lit. with the gods) Please/You're Welcome - belooo Thank You - take Example text Featured Banner '''English This language was once featured. Thanks to its level of quality, plausability, and usage capabilities, it has been voted as featured Translation Ezx et beelini leun zxadivnipolutar to ef admineke Miro tope vofin bene et gimatovalagu, et vesnaatlagu, zxee et sxkalagu, tope mesxonnwa zxaxxaaautar divnipolzxe ti dom ozxeglamstiil. Direct Translation This the language once was shown by the admin. Because it has much the quality, the reality, and the usability, it has been was chosen to show by some vote-people. The North Wind and the Sun English The North Wind and the Sun disputed as to which was the most powerful, and agreed that he should be declared the victor who could first strip a wayfaring man of his clothes. The North Wind first tried his power and blew with all his might, but the keener his blasts, the closer the Traveler wrapped his cloak around him, until at last, resigning all hope of victory, the Wind called upon the Sun to see what he could do. The Sun suddenly shone out with all his warmth. The Traveler no sooner felt his genial rays than he took off one garment after another, and at last, fairly overcome with heat, undressed and bathed in a stream that lay in his path. Persuasion is better than Force. Translation Et kif sxule zxee et sxovu posxdelada bo xxan mefintada lebene obrezxva, zxee dibrandelada laasi tope zxakofafintada et poline xxan morda dxumanfintada leun huaanzxe di buurstaa ere sxpovemka. Et kif sxule leun pakafintada topenn er sxoaaxxos zxee wirmafintada vi paa topenn et grusx, nam beneka doft topenn eti wirmas, Direct translation The north wind and the sun fought for which was more powerful, and agreed should it be declared the winner which were it be able first to take off a traveler's the clothes. The north wind first tried his the power and blew with all his the strength, but more keen his the blows, the closer Category:Languages